Duterte not keen on term extension, Palace insists

Malacañang reiterated yesterday that President Duterte is not interested in staying in power beyond 2022 even if the proposed federal Constitution allows him to run for reelection.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque stressed that Duterte does not want to stay in office beyond his original six-year term. “PRRD has repeatedly said: Not a second beyond his term in 2022. He has said what he said: Not a second longer,” Roque said.

Julio Teehankee, a member of the Consultative Committee on the revision of the 1987 Constitution, had said Duterte, or even Vice President Leni Robredo, is not prohibited from seeking reelection under the draft Constitution.

“Their term will end in 2022. There’s no ban. They can run under a new Constitution,” Teehankee, chairperson of the ConCom subcommittee on political reforms, added.

In the draft charter, all elected officials have a four-year term with one reelection. If it is ratified, Duterte can run again for a new four-year term that ends in 2026, and can seek reelection for another four-year term that ends on 2030, potentially staying in power for eight years.

Teehankee added that there will be no term extension for any official during the transition to the proposed federal government.
Duterte has been pushing for federalism to resolve the long-standing territorial dispute in Mindanao and allow provinces to benefit more from their resources. (Argyll Cyrus B. Geducos)